The Wicker Man: Two-Disc Collector's Edition

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All Rise...

Judge Paul Corupe wonders what would happen if he took The Wicker Man to Burning Man.

Editor's Note

Our review of The Wicker Man, published
September 3rd, 2001, is also available.

The Charge

"Come. It is time to keep your appointment with the Wicker
Man."—Lord Summerisle (Christopher Lee)

Opening Statement

Notorious for constantly re-releasing their small but impressive library of
cult favorites, Anchor Bay is at it once again, sparking up a new, two disc set
of the classic '70s British thriller The Wicker Man to coincide with the
awful 2006 Hollywood remake. The film's theatrical and (preferred) extended cut,
previously only paired on Anchor Bay's limited edition wooden box set, have
finally been reunited in a new edition that actually trumps that earlier
collector's item with the inclusion of a brand new commentary.

Facts of the Case

Arriving at a small Scottish isle to investigate the case of a missing girl,
Sergeant Howie (Edward Woodward, The Equalizer), can't get the locals to
answer his questions or co-operate in any way. A devoutly religious, by-the-book
police officer, Howie is furthermore shocked when he discovers that the secluded
residents still cling to a pagan existence of free love and the worship of
nature, as preached by the mysterious Lord Summerisle (Christopher Lee, The Curse of Frankenstein). Howie is
convinced that the girl has only been hidden away until the May Day parade so
that she can be sacrificed to ensure healthy crops for the rest of the year.
Increasingly perturbed, Howie must resist succumbing to the isle's many
forbidden pleasures—including the innkeeper's comely daughter Willow
(Britt Ekland, The Man with the Golden
Gun)—to unravel Summerisle's insidious plans.

The Evidence

Far and away one of the most original thrillers of the 1970s, The Wicker
Man has gone from almost complete obscurity in its own day—thanks to
repeated distribution SNAFUs—to become one of the most infamous cult films
ever made. With the definitive, but decidedly "fan only," wooden DVD
box set out of print for some time now, Anchor Bay has finally served up an
inclusive edition of the film for a more general audience.

Much has been written about the film's surprising and unique effectiveness.
Sleuth scribe Anthony Shaffer's taut
script unfolds like a conventional whodunit, generously dropping clues for both
Sergeant Howie and the viewer about the whereabouts of the missing girl. Once
the obscene pagan rites start to encroach on Howie's strictly-held beliefs,
however, the The Wicker Man's central mystery gives way to a sense of
palpable dread, as the frantic police officer begins tearing through the isle's
houses in a desperate attempt to locate the girl. Ramping up the tension during
a grotesque May Day parade that features the town's inhabitants dressed in
heathenish animal costumes, The Wicker Man finally culminates in an
ingenious plot twist that makes for one of the most unforgettable scenes ever
committed to celluloid.

Setting the scene with distinctive imagery of sex intertwined with nature,
impish humor, and a rousing soundtrack of folk music, first-time director Robin
Hardy somehow manages to hold it all together, working in tandem with Shaffer's
script to coyly rope the viewer into an elaborately crafted mystery. What really
makes the approach unique, however, is that unlike many occult thrillers that
popped up over the 1970s, the conspiring villagers are never portrayed as
evil-the filmmakers have simply recreated a real pagan village as it might
actually exist and function, instead drawing chilling moments from the resulting
culture clash in a way that has been but abandoned by modern horror films and
thrillers.

Fuelling the flames of cult interest over the years are the performances of
Woodward and Lee, who turn in some of the best work of their respective careers.
The complete opposite of the free and apparently happy islanders, Woodward
deftly manages to make the uptight, unfriendly police officer a figure for
audiences to strongly identify with, while Lee's portrayal of the duplicitous
Lord of the isle stews in a barely restrained menace that brilliantly plays
against his earlier roles, giving the former Hammer star one of his most
memorable roles.

Reviled and subsequently re-cut by new British Lion studio executives who
took over after the film had wrapped production, this set presents both the
butchered theatrical release of The Wicker Man along with a restored
director's cut that incorporates more than 11 minutes of additional footage,
including a pre-credit sequence that establishes Howie's religious values,
Willow sexually initiating a young teenager under the watchful eye of Lord
Summerisle, and extend shots of Willow's enticing nude dance meant to arouse
Howie on the eve of the parade. Both 1.85:1 transfers have been recycled from
AB's earlier wood box, so the image and sound quality are identical, with
excellent sound, sharp colors and no video artifacts. As before, the restored
portions of the director's cut are taken from a tape source, so they're rather
soft and far less colorful than the rest of the film-the shift in quality is
immediately noticeable.

In terms of extras, the excellent, 30-minute "The Wicker Man
Enigma" documentary has also been resurrected here, boasting interviews
with all the principal players including Hardy, Shaffer, Woodward and Lee, as
well as producer Peter Snell and planned distributor Roger Corman, who reveal in
fascinating detail the convoluted and sometimes unbelievable story of how the
film was made, buried (literally!), and ultimately found its audience. Much of
their insights are further supported by a brand new commentary on the extend
edition with Lee, Woodward, and Hardy, as moderated by Mark Kermode. The one
aspect that sets this release above its wooden box set counterpart, this track
is extremely thorough, expounding greatly on the information presented in the
documentary. All the participants have a lot to say, and it really does make for
a fascinating listen. Finally, we have some text bios, plus a handful of
trailers and radio spots.

Closing Statement

The addition of one commentary track is probably not enough to make anyone
but the most die-hard The Wicker Man fan upgrade from the
previously-released wooden bo, but anyone who has been holding off on this
particular title can do no better than this two-disc set, which can definitely
be considered definitive—at least until Anchor Bay's next re-release,
anyways.

The Verdict

"You're all raving mad!"

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